My boyfriend and I will be spending the month of July in Florence studying at the University of the Arts. We only have class Monday through Thursday for 2 hours a day, so we have plenty of time to sight see. Where are good places to go? We would like to spend a weekend in Venice,and I really want to go to Tuscany. We were considering flying in and out of Rome and taking the train to Florence. We would like to spend some extra days in Rome as well. Any tips for travelers on a budget? Any cheap airfare secrets? Thanks.

Have you priced fares through STA Travel? They specialize in student travel, and are very helpful. I think they also offer special student prices for sightseeing packages: statravel.com, or 800-777-0112.
We bought round-trip for my daughter to Florence this next semester through them, which was a very good price on Lufthansa and included an ISIC card. They have a very lenient policy to change your return flight, too, if needed.

We also bought our daughter's RT ticket through STA travel for her semester (currently) in Siena. It was also on Lufthansa and we were able to fly her into Rome and out of Paris since she wants to travel when her program ends. They had the best fare and the most generous return policy as noted above. Yes, fly into Rome and take the train to Florence; from there you can explore Tuscany by train/bus and get to Venice as well. Get a good budget travel book (visit a bookstore and browse) and start there.

Florence is IN Tuscany.

A weekend in Venice sounds great.

You can take plenty of day trips within the region of Tuscany--definitely to Siena, and also to other small cities and towns (e.g., Cortona, Lucca, just for a few examples). You might want to spend a weekend in the Umbria region as well, or you could take long day trips to Assisi, Perugia, and other places in Umbria tht you can reach without a car.

Hi a,

Lucky you.

airports convenient to Florence are Pisa (PSA) and Florence (FLR), although Rome might be less expensive.

Places to visit: Orvieto, Siena, San gimignano, Montepulciano, Pisa and Lucca, The Cinque Terre (overnight), Bologna, The Amalfi Coast and Naples (overnight).

Take the no 7 bus from the Florence SMN station up to Fiesole for the Etruscan ruins and to watch the sun set over Florence from the Terrace of the Bar Bleu.

Try not to overdo hitting the books.

PS,

Check www.kayak.com, www.mobissimo.com and www.1800flyeurope.com for airfares.

Thank you for all of your tips - they've been really helpful. I've never been to italy before, so what is the best way to book transportation to places outside of Florence? I'm thinking that the train would be the easiest. Also, does anyone know of a great travel guide for Italy? I've heard the Let's Go series os pretty good for travelers on a budget. Thanks!!

Hi a,

Train travel is very inexpensive, and quite good.

You might want to visit the Thorntree Forum at www.lonelyplanet.com.